Youth Speak
By Arlene Thay
(published in May-June issue of Prolife magazine)

Who is Mary to me? Why is she loved, not by thousands, but
by millions of people? Why do people pray and say: “pray to
Jesus through Mary”. I never understood that idea. I never
comprehended her role even if I was brought up in a
Catholic school. I don’t know why, but I just respected her
for being the mother of Jesus, yet not realizing the full
meaning of her existence. It didn’t help that other
Christians attacked the meaning of her existence and
challenged Catholics of its Marian dogmas. I guess this
made me doubt a bit at that time, so I never really thought
about it again.

Little by little, time after time, God began to enlighten
me. But it was only until I saw the movie The Passion of
the Christ by Mel Gibson did I realize why the Blessed
Virgin Mary is so dear to many people, and why she holds a
very important role in our Salvation History. I now
understand why she holds importance to the whole Catholic
brethren.

“Then Mary said, “I am the servant of the Lord, let it be

done to me as you have said.” And the Angel left her.”
Luke
1:38 (Catholic Pastoral Edition)

Had Mary said another, can you imagine what would have
become of the life in her womb? Her resounding “YES” to
CHOOSING life was definite, humble, and wholehearted.
Saying yes wasn’t easy. She was facing:
• Dilemma over Joseph’s reaction
If Joseph divorced her, how can she continue on her
pregnancy when the punishment for carrying a baby
illegitimately in the Jewish laws is death?
• Mixed Emotions
A young girl at fourteen, can you imagine the thoughts that
ran in her mind at that delicate age? She would have been
scared at what the future holds for her and her baby yet
overjoyed at being in God’s favor; worried about the
pregnancy yet calmed over God’s presence.
Yet even with all these emotions, she held on. She chose
life. She chose to let Jesus be, what God has planned for
him all along, our Messiah. And I know that never did she
regret her decision in any time and in any way.

In the movie, Mel Gibson portrayed Mary following closely
the events of the passion of our Lord. Whenever the Lord
sees her, He finds renewed strength. When Jesus pained, her
heart is pained as well. I realized the beauty of the love
a mother has for her son through the movie. It made me
stronger in my conviction that the connection between a
mother and her baby is so strong that it can never be
broken. Even until the last few hours of Jesus’ life, He
remembered to leave Mary in the hands of his most beloved
apostle, John. When Jesus’ said to Mary, “Woman, behold
your son,” and to John, “Son, behold your mother.”,
a
meaningful reflection dawned on me. Jesus said this because
He knew His mother wanted to die with Him and He couldn’t
let this be because Mary still had a role to fulfill. She
was to be the strength of the apostles, and of all
disciples as well. He entrusted her to be the Mother of all
nations. When He died on the cross, He saved everyone and
that made Mary the mother of all nations.

Because of these reflections, I find myself venerating
Mary. I now carry the rosary and pray it meaningfully
because I know that when I cannot face myself for my sins,
Mary extends to me her love to be able to face Jesus so
that my heart is ready to receive His grace and mercy.

I have also come to value mothers for who they are and what
they represent. I value my own mother for choosing to give
birth to the four of us in the family. I value mothers
because they must have felt what Mary did: having mixed
emotions and all. My mother may not have been faced with
the same dilemma; any pregnancy is worrying enough yet it
did not stop her from choosing life. And to the other
mothers out there, who bravely went on with their
pregnancies, despite the conditions that faced them:
pregnancy out of wedlock; difficult pregnancies such as
contracting measles, ectopic pregnancies, pregnancies when
the mother’s health is at risk; incest pregnancies; failed
contraception, etc.; we SALUTE you for respecting the right
to LIFE! Cheers to you, all mothers, who are one with Mary!
Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mothers!!!